Thomson

It’s a heck of a way to run a pre-election campaign. On the eve of an expected election, politicians usually spend their time playing up good news, downplaying the bad, shaking hands and kissing babies.

Eyeglasses might not be the right diagnosis

John Burke urges Canadians to get their eyes checked by a Doctor of Optometry, even if their vision doesn't appear to be compromised.

Photograph by: Supplied
, www.newscanada.com

(NC)—John Burke says he's a perfect example of assuming all was well with his health when, in fact, it wasn't.

In the 1970s, Burke was reading and distributing mail as a government worker when he noticed a slight change in his vision. Upon visiting his local Doctor of Optometry, Burke, at the age of 44, received a surprise diagnosis.

“I went into my optometrist's office thinking I just needed a pair of glasses,” he says. But a pressure reading, which is part of a regular eye examination, indicated he was already living with glaucoma, an incurable eye condition that, if left untreated, can result in blindness.

“There were no symptoms, no warning signs. I had glaucoma and didn't even realize it,” he recalled.

Unfortunately, Burke's story is all too familiar. It is estimated that one in seven Canadians will develop a serious eye disease in their lifetime – and many of those diseases have no symptoms, so they can only be detected through a comprehensive eye exam.

Following his diagnosis, Burke says he immediately began treatment for his glaucoma through daily drops and later, eye surgery that helped relieve pressure. Now 86-years-old, he credits that initial eye exam and his early diagnosis for slowing the progression of his vision loss.

Burke says his message is simple: for Canadians to get an eye exam from their Doctor of Optometry, even when their vision doesn't appear to be compromised.

“Your eyes are for life, so don't take your vision health for granted,” he said.

May is Vision Health Month, and CNIB and Doctors of Optometry Canada are calling on everyone to get an eye exam from a Doctor of Optometry. More information is available online at eyesareforlife.ca.